Library Resource of the Month – Reading Recommendations
Need something new to read? The Bellingham Library’s website has a link called Reading Recommendations, which takes you to a number of ways that you can find your next great read! The possibilities to explore under the Reading Recommendations link are:
• BookPage
• New Titles
• New York Times Best Sellers
• Novelist Book Recommendations
• Similar Books
• Staff Picks
• Topic Based Recommendations
BookPage is a monthly reading recommendations magazine made available to readers through more than 3,500 subscribing public libraries and bookstores across the United States. The Bellingham Public Library subscribes to both the print and digital versions of BookPage! For more than 30 years, BookPage has been a trusted source for book reviews, recommendations, and author interviews. It highlights new authors as well as anticipated bestsellers, pointing readers to the best new releases across all genres. Come into the library and pick up your copy of BookPage in print or click on the BookPage link under Reading Recommendations to read the online version.
Clicking on New Titles will bring you to Wowbrary, an electronic newsletter which highlights all the week’s new titles at the library. This includes fiction and nonfiction, adult and young adult titles, DVDs, music CDs, audiobooks, as well as books in large print. You can select the language you would like to read the newsletter in and can view previous newsletters from prior weeks too! There is also a link to sign up if you would like to receive Wowbrary in your email’s inbox each week.
New York Times Best Sellers will bring you to the lists of NY Times Best Sellers for the current week, as well as previous weeks. This includes lists for:
• Combined print and ebook fiction and nonfiction
• Hardcover fiction and nonfiction
• Paperback trade fiction and nonfiction
• Advice, how-to and miscellaneous• Children’s middle grade hardcover, picture books and series
• Young adult hardcover and series
The Novelist Book Recommendations link will take you to a database called NoveList Plus, which helps you to find what to read next. You can search by keyword, title, author, series, or narrator. If you enjoy reading a certain author or liked a particular title, you can search for that author or title and then click on a link to similar authors/titles. You can also search by types of books that you like to find other books that fit those criteria.
Similar Books will bring you to lists of best seller read-alikes. If you enjoyed reading a certain best seller, check out this link to see if there is a list of similar books that you might want to try.
Staff Picks lists each library staff member with the types of books they generally prefer. Just click on the staff person’s name and you will get a list of their favorite books. There is also a Staff Picks display in the library with selections for you to choose from.
Topic Based Recommendations features lists of books that are separated by the months of the year. Under each month are lists pertaining to that month. For example: under January are lists for New Year’s Resolutions and Civil Rights in honor of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. There are also displays in the library to correspond with the different lists each month.
No matter what type of book you like to read, the library has recommendations for you! To access these suggestions, go to the library’s website at www.bellinghamlibrary.org. Scroll down to the Reading Recommendations link. You can also stop by the library and ask a staff person for ideas!
